Thirty Years Ago - August 1995

5^th August

Dragonflies and Butterflies were on the menu today and we began in Maldon with a first stake out for a Camberwell Beauty. Initial searches of local buddleias revealed Peacocks, Red Admirals, Small Tortoiseshells, Whites and Painted Ladies and it was not until we were invited into a young birder’s garden [Eds: Simon Patient if memory serves!] that we were shown exactly where it had been seen for the preceding three days.  We spent half hour nattering away, checking the butterflies and slurping coffee when the Beauty cruised in and I yelled ‘there it is!’ Fortunately this fast flyer stopped on a drainpipe for ten minutes before disappearing, never to be seen again. Almost as mythical a butterfly as Red-flanked Bluetail was a bird.

Camberwell Beauty

Next stop Abberton Reservoir where the male White-headed Duck was promptly found dozing with the raft of Ruddys.  The young Hobbies were still on their pylon nest and one of the adults was seen chasing a Herring Gull while out on the island the adult Greater Flamingo was to be found making it three counties that I have seen it in this year.  There were Common and Ruddy Darters, Brown Hawkers and a few Damselflies and Skippers around the visitors centre [Eds: must have been the old centre?].

North and onto Caister cemetery where despite searching we could not find any Darters of any kind let alone rare ones so it was back to Great Yarmouth Cemetery as they had been seen here too. However, we almost never got there as the accelerator cable on his car snapped about a mile away but amazingly  the AA arrived within 15 minutes and had fixed it within 20!

It did not take long to find the Yellow Winged Darters with quite a few males and females being seen and another hanging female was brought closer by pulling down the branch it was on albeit by Peter Pyke sitting on my shoulders.  The experts on site keenly pronounced that this was indeed a female Vagrant Darter as at close range the ovipositor could be seen pointing directly down at right angles to the abdomen from the third segment while on Common it protrudes at an angle out to the side from either side of a segment.  The black facial lines around the eyes were also noted an appeared like a slightly slimmer (but not pinched) Common Darter.

We kept looking and found 20 Yellow Winged, a male Black Darter and both Common and Ruddy Darters along with Migrant Hawkers while Small Copper was added to the Butterfly list.

With all the Dragons safely collected we made our way to Cantley Beet Factory where three juvenile Marsh Sandpipers had been seen.  Only one was apparently left as we checked in and walked down but we very quickly found two and a Wood Sandpiper and then the third Marsh appeared with a second Wood Sand.  Tringatastic!  The previous four Marsh Sands I had seen had all been adults in various stages of moult so seeing these three on a evaporation lagoon where strange mineral towers had formed was a real joy.  Snipe, Common and Green Sandpipers were also noted around the margins of the pit and a few Black-headed Gulls paddled around too.  A cream capped juvenile Marsh Harrier quartered and a male was seen as we drove back out.

 Marsh Sandpipers

One final stop; a field near Little Bromley to the east of Colchester where some Quail had been singing and even showing.  Despite the field being partly cut they refused to show even though they responded well to the tape [Eds: Don’t judge please…]  A Little Owl called from the top of a Copper Beech and a small flock of Tree Sparrows rounded of a superb day creature watching!

6^th August

With little sleep I headed up to Tony’s and then with Kettle back to Little Bromley in the hope that we could entice out the Quail but the early morning mist meant that the farmer was not going to cut the rest of the field that morning and so our chances were as slim as the previous attempt.

At about 9am the lads went home leaving me with the Papps family and the local property owner (not the farmer).  The Quails were very vocal with at least four but they stayed stubbornly deep within the wheat field but at 0950 one started calling from the grass right next to the path.  We got within two feet of it and had it synchronised with the tape [Eds: yes, a tape player about the size of a brick with big clunky buttons – not even one of those dictating ones!] but we still could not see it but eventually it flew out and gave us all an amazingly close view where every detail could be observed.

It whirred off like a long winged little grouse.  I was over the moon.  At this point Tony and Kettle came back but a further hour wait was in vain.  Definitely worth another sleepless night.

12^th August

I chickened out on going with the crew for the Pacific Golden Plover in Cleveland as the thought of a ten hour wait if we missed it in the morning did not appeal.  As it was they got it at 5.40am and were heading south soon after on the news of the [Eastern] Olivaceous Warbler at Benacre.  I on the other hand never found out about it till 4pm and so it was a bit late to the party and arrived with James and Ian at 6.30pm.  We almost ran down the beach to Beech Farm and once at the chosen hedge it took 20 agonising Minutes to refind it!

The big listers twitched the spring one on Fair Isle but I was happy to have this one much closer to home.  This one cost me a whole fiver!  As we were about to leave a shout in a deep Yorkshire accent went up and to all the assembled ears sounded for the world like ‘three Hornbills overhead!’ when in fact it was three Spoonbills heading slowly south down the Suffolk coast. A wonderful sight.

19^th August

A farcical dash to St Margarets-at-Cliff for Britain’s first Middle Spotted Woodpecker.  We stood no chance in the heavily wooded valley and had to make do with Green and great Spots before retiring to the pub for a pint and dinner. [Eds: and no, it did not get accepted]

21^st August

My lunchtime walk gave me 12 Sandwich Terns off Lyle Park.

22^nd-24^th August

A weekend with Emma in Wales around Dolgellau with Chough and Red Kites scrambling their way onto my year list.

28^th August

An afternoon potter out to Hertford for a very smart Cattle Egret was successful although it turned out to be of the Eastern race – coromundus and therefore and escape despite the lack of rings. The orange buff on the head extended down onto the cheeks and well down the neck and onto the front.  A Western bird should be all white by this time of year.  Nevertheless a very smart bird that fed unconcerned by our presence with a small herd of cows.

Lowestoft Life 13th - 21st August 2025

A craft fair in Nicholas Everitt Park in Oulton Broad gave me the chance to have a wander on the track towards Carlton Marshes but it was disappointingly quiet and I did not see a single butterfly and just a single Migrant Hawker.  There were no insects on the Hemp Agrimony at all.  A Marsh Harrier circled the Broad and a forage pouch full of ripe Greengages salvaged the walk!

That evening I put two traps on in the garden and Antony set up three more right by the coast in Easton Wood.  I was up in the dark and checking my own trap and was delighted with my eventual total of 68 species overnight including both Copper Underwings, Maple Prominent, Blood-vein, Wormwood and Yarrow Pugs, Poplar Kitten, Pale Mottled Willow, Dark Sword Grass, Rusty Dot Pearl and a delightful Carcina quercana amongst the haul.  I even had a bird garden tick with a Sedge Warbler coming out of roost right by my trap, chacking and zooming over the garage!

Carcina quercana 

Poplar Kitten

Wormwood Pug

By 6.30 we were down at the coast traps at Easton where the different wavelengths of bulbs used had attracted different moths to each trap and we managed a very reasonable 103 species of which quite a few were new to me but the stars were a monster Clifden Nonpareil on the funnel of one trap, a pair of Drinkers, various Wainscots, Underwings and Prominents and a host of micros.

Agriphila selasella 

Ancylosis oblitella 

Black Arches

Caloptilia populetrum 

Chilo phragmitella

Clifden Nonpareil

Clifden Nonpareil

Coast Dart

a richly coloured coastal Common Wainscot

Drinker

Epinotia nisella 

Lesser Swallow Prominent & Swallow Prominent

Lesser Swallow Prominent

Monopis monachella 

a pale Nutmeg

Pediasia contaminella 

Poplar Hawkmoth

Sharp Angled Peacock

Shore Wainscot

Shore Wainscot

Small Yellow Wave

Square Spotted Clay

Twin-spot Wainscot

White-line Dart

Ypsolopha dentella

Ypsolopha dentella

It was a glorious morning and there were Blackcaps, Whitethroats, Chiffchaffs and Tits roving through the Aspens and Oaks while Sand Martins and Swallow moved overhead and three dark hind Fallow Deer tripped through the trees with two mid-sized fawns in tow.  A Whinchat was seen in the fields o the way out where 21 Lapwing had already gathered.

        If you have not seen the defensive swaying of large Arion before - just enjoy!

The morning of the 15^th saw me having a short walk around the Net Posts and Ness Point.  A Chiffchaff was my only passerine but there was a juvenile Caspian Gull on one of the groynes and a 15 Common Terns loafing around.  There were six Turnstone under my nose and two spangled juvenile Redshank keeping them company – not sure if I have had them here before.  Back at Chez Wren there was a Small Mottled Willow and Golden Rod Pug to see along with a cup of coffee.

Redshanks & Turnstone

Golden Rod Pug

Trapping that night gave me a Toadflax Brocade, Wax Moth, Prays ruficeps, Coronet, a smart Euzophora pinguis and three Red Underwings and therein lies a story.  I found the first in the trap and initially thought I had struck Clifden gold as it felt so big but I was pleased nevertheless.  The second I found on my living room floor having been sucked to death by the cats over night although it was doubly unlucky to have got through catio netting to get caught in the first place.  The third I discovered on the path opposite the moth trap that afternoon although it was somewhat two dimensional…

Acrobasis advenella

Broad Barred White

Delicate

Euzophora pinguis

Poplar Hawkmoth

Prays ruficeps

Red Underwing

Red Underwing

Ringed China Mark

Square Spot Rustic

Toadflax Brocade

That evening I scurried down to Ness Point as a Greenish Warbler had been showing well on and off all day and I had somehow managed to not pick up any of the messages.  Thankfully it was immediately on view and it actually showed incredibly well unlike many of this species I have seen.  It was feeding actively in the Tamarisks around some old rusty buoys and had little bouts of fervent calling too.

Greenish Warbler - Chris Darby

Greenish Warbler - my arty shot

Greenish Warbler

A Guillemot bobbed around offshore although it had the attention of all the local big gulls and Kittiwakes were still milling around too.

Another pop into the Wrens added three more moths including the much desired Ni Moth.  Trapping at home that night was quiet.

Bulrush Wainscot

Eupoecilia ambiguella

Ni Moth

Ni Moth

On Monday morning I gave Pakefield Beach a go but it was quiet once again with just seven Gannet, six Scoter, 47 Teal, two Gadwall and three Mute Swan for my troubles. There were 12 Pied Wagtails on the green and my walk around resulted in some moth leaf mine hunting with predictable results.

Herring Gull

Pied Wagtails 

Mute Swan

Yellow-horned Poppy

Cacoecimorpha pronubana

Caloptilia fidella on Hop

Cosmopterix pulchrimella on Pellitory

Cosmopterix zieglerella on Hop

Gracillaria syringella on Lilac

Stigmella speciosa on Sycamore

Two more looks off Pakefield Beach gave me two distant Bonxie and six Little Terns on the 20th but nothing else but this morning I managed just nine Gannet for my troubles until a flock of 110 Little Terns came up off the beach!  That was special!  The moved off shore and drifted north but about half circled back and began feeding between the beach and the rough water over the sandbar.  

Moths last night were disappointing with just 22 species with an Old Lady being brought alive into the living room by a very smug Peanut being the only one new for the year!